Waseem Daker v. State, A24A1634

In 1996, Waseem Daker was convicted of two counts of aggravated stalking and sentenced to ten years in prison; his conviction was affirmed on direct appeal.
Daker later filed multiple motions for an out-of-time appeal, all of which were denied, with the latest motion filed in 2021.
Daker argued he was entitled to a second direct appeal because he did not validly waive his right to appellate counsel during his original appeals.
The trial court dismissed Daker's 2021 motion, stating he was not entitled to a second direct appeal and that he had already pursued habeas relief.
The appellate court dismissed Daker’s latest appeal for lack of jurisdiction, noting the issue was barred by the law of the case and that an out-of-time appeal is no longer an available remedy.
The court also denied as moot all of Daker's procedural motions related to the appeal.

Issue	Daker's Argument	State's Argument	Held
Entitlement to a second out-of-time direct appeal	Did not validly waive appellate counsel; should get another appeal	Already had a direct appeal; law prohibits another	Not entitled; appeal dismissed
Construction of 2021 motion as habeas petition	Trial court should treat his motion as habeas	He already pursued habeas; new one barred	Not entitled; claim waived
Change in law supports new claims	Recent cases allow second out-of-time appeal	No change in law; Daker could have raised before	No change; claim waived
Jurisdiction over appeal	Appeal should be heard	Prior decision was law of the case	No jurisdiction

Daker v. State, 243 Ga. App. 848 (affirmed Daker's original conviction and direct appeal)
Ross v. State, 310 Ga. App. 326 (law of the case effect of prior dismissals)
Hicks v. McGee, 289 Ga. 573 (binding effect of appellate rulings in subsequent proceedings)
Daker v. Williams, 279 Ga. 782 (prior habeas petition by Daker denied and conviction affirmed)
Allen v. Daker, 311 Ga. 485 (discussed the circumstances under which a second, out-of-time direct appeal is allowed)